U.S. patent number 10,731,379 [Application Number 15/613,345] was granted by the patent office on 2020-08-04 for fence post for an animal enclosure.
This patent grant is currently assigned to HEBE STUDIO LTD. The grantee listed for this patent is Hebe Studio Ltd.. Invention is credited to Simon Nicholls, Johannes Paul, James Tuthill, William Windham.
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United States Patent |
10,731,379 |
Tuthill , et al. |
August 4, 2020 |
Fence post for an animal enclosure
Abstract
A fence post for an animal enclosure including a first member, a
second member, a collar, and a fastener. The first member and
second member are substantially the same length. The second member
has a cross-bore at a proximal end thereof, the collar defines an
aperture, and the first member is fixedly attachable to the collar.
The second member is configured to be partially received within the
collar for alignment of the cross-bore and the aperture, and the
second member is fixable relative to the collar by means of the
fastener arranged to at least partially passthrough said cross-bore
and said aperture.
Inventors: |
Tuthill; James (Oxford,
GB), Paul; Johannes (London, GB), Nicholls;
Simon (Northamptonshire, GB), Windham; William
(Banbury, GB) |
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Hebe Studio Ltd. |
Oxfordshire |
N/A |
GB |
|
|
Assignee: |
HEBE STUDIO LTD (Oxforshire,
GB)
|
Family
ID: |
1000004963664 |
Appl.
No.: |
15/613,345 |
Filed: |
June 5, 2017 |
Prior Publication Data
|
|
|
|
Document
Identifier |
Publication Date |
|
US 20170350159 A1 |
Dec 7, 2017 |
|
Foreign Application Priority Data
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
E04H
12/2223 (20130101); E04H 17/22 (20130101); E04H
12/223 (20130101); A01K 1/0005 (20130101); E04H
17/18 (20130101); E04H 12/18 (20130101); E04H
17/24 (20130101); E04H 17/161 (20130101); E04H
17/20 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
E04H
17/02 (20060101); E04H 17/22 (20060101); E04H
17/18 (20060101); A01K 1/00 (20060101); E04H
12/22 (20060101); E04H 12/18 (20060101); E04H
17/16 (20060101); E04H 17/20 (20060101); E04H
17/24 (20060101) |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
394600 |
|
May 1992 |
|
AT |
|
658105 |
|
Oct 1986 |
|
CH |
|
284283 |
|
Sep 1988 |
|
EP |
|
2132305 |
|
Jul 1984 |
|
GB |
|
2439546 |
|
Jan 2008 |
|
GB |
|
02/095153 |
|
Nov 2002 |
|
WO |
|
Other References
Intellectual Property Office of the United Kingdom, Search Report
issued in Application No. GB1609760.2, dated Nov. 14, 2016. cited
by applicant.
|
Primary Examiner: McMahon; Matthew R
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP
Rost; Stephen F.
Claims
The invention claimed is:
1. A fence post comprising: a first member, a second member, a
collar including a sidewall; and a fastener, wherein the first
member and second member are substantially the same length, the
second member having a cross-bore at a proximal end thereof, the
sidewall defining a single sidewall aperture and lacking any
additional apertures in the sidewall, and wherein the first member
is fixedly attachable to the collar, wherein the cross-bore
includes a first aperture and second aperture, and the second
member is configured to be partially received within the collar for
alignment of the first aperture and second aperture of the
cross-bore and the sidewall aperture, the second member being
fixable relative to the collar by means of the fastener arranged to
pass through the first aperture and the second aperture of said
cross-bore and said sidewall aperture of said collar.
2. A fence post according to claim 1, wherein the first member is
partially received within the collar.
3. A fence post according to claim 2 including an adhesive, wherein
the first member is fixedly and sealably attachable to the collar
by the adhesive, wherein the adhesive is only located at one end of
the collar.
4. A fence post according to claim 3, wherein, in use the first
member forms an upper part of said fence post and the second member
forms a lower part of said fence post, and the adhesive is only
located at the first member and not the second member.
5. A fence post according to claim 1, wherein, in use the first
member forms an upper part of said fence post and the second member
forms a lower part of said fence post.
6. A fence post according to claim 1, wherein the collar includes
an end-stop.
7. A fence post according to claim 6, wherein the end-stop is
provided at a collar longitudinal mid-point.
8. A fence post according to claim 7, wherein the end-stop
comprises a formation extending into a bore defined by said collar,
the formation including a dimple.
9. A fence post according to claim 1, wherein the first member
further comprises a connector for coupling to a fence, the
connector being arranged at a distal end of the first member.
10. A fence post according to claim 9, wherein the second member
further comprises a foot, the foot being arranged at a distal end
of the second member.
11. A fence post according to claim 10, wherein said connector
defines a fence plane and said sidewall aperture is aligned with
the fence plane, and wherein said foot includes a side-foot, the
side foot extending perpendicularly relative to the cross-bore and
the sidewall aperture.
12. A fence post according to claim 1, wherein the fastener
comprises a screw.
13. A fence post according to claim 12, wherein the screw, is
self-tapping.
14. A fence post according to claim 1, wherein the first member or
second member and/or collar are tubular.
15. A fence post according to claim 1, wherein the first or second
member are made of fibreglass.
16. A fence post according to claim 1, wherein the collar is made
of metal.
17. An enclosure assembly comprising a net fence and at least one
fence post according to claim 1, said fence post being releasably
connectable to said net fence.
Description
RELATED APPLICATIONS
The present application claims priority to United Kingdom Patent
Application Ser. No. 1609760.2, filed Jun. 3, 2016, the disclosure
of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
FIELD
One aspect of this disclosure relates to a fence post for an animal
enclosure; particularly but not exclusively to a two-part fence
post that comprises a first member, a second member and a fastening
arrangement for coupling the first and second members together.
Another aspect of the disclosure relates to an enclosure for
animals that includes one or more of the aforementioned fence
posts.
BACKGROUND
Fence posts have previously been used to support metal or plastic
wire netting in order to provide enclosures for livestock such as
chickens, ducks and pheasants. As such livestock benefit from
grazing in different areas, it is preferable for the fence posts to
be movable so that the enclosure can be re-sited in alternate
locations. It is also preferable that the fence posts have a
lightweight structure.
Known fence posts are often of a solid, wood or metal construction
and are therefore relatively heavy. They also tend to be cumbersome
and require considerable storage space. Another problem with such
posts is that when mailed to customers, shipping and courier costs
are increased due to their considerable weight and volume.
The present disclosure has been devised with the foregoing problems
in mind. An aim of one implementation of the teachings of the
disclosure is to provide a fence post that is compact before final
assembly, that is efficient, reliable, lightweight and which may be
produced at relatively low cost.
SUMMARY
In accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure, there
is provided a two-part fence post comprising a first member, a
second member and a fastening arrangement for coupling the first
and second members together.
The first member and second member may be substantially the same
length.
The second member may have a cross-bore at a proximal end
thereof.
The fastening arrangement for coupling the two members may include
a collar and a fastener.
The second member may have a cross-bore at a proximal end thereof,
the collar may have an aperture.
The first member may be fixedly attached to the collar.
The second member may be configured to be partially received within
the collar so as to align the cross-bore and the aperture.
The second member may be fixable relative to the collar by means of
the fastener arranged to at least partially pass through said
cross-bore and said aperture.
Provision of the fence post as a two-part structure allows the
fence post to be packaged and stored in a shorter container prior
to assembly. Providing the first member and second member at
substantially the same length allows the container size to be
optimised for compactness.
The first member may be partially received within the collar.
The first member may be fixedly attached to the collar by means of
an adhesive. Alternatively, or additionally a mechanical fastener
may be used.
The first member may be the upper member and the second member may
be the lower member. In this arrangement, in combination with the
use of adhesive, a water-proof seal can be provided to prevent
water ingress into the fence post, which water ingress may
otherwise weather the fence post materials (either by freeze-thaw
action and/or corrosion) or destabilise the fence post.
The collar may include an end-stop. As the first member may be
received within the collar, this arrangement prevents
over-insertion of the first member during manufacture. Furthermore,
the use of jigs, tools or measurement equipment is not necessary to
ensure correct insertion of the first member within the collar.
Furthermore, as the second member may similarly be received within
the collar, this arrangement ensures the vertical alignment of the
bore and aperture.
The end-stop may be provided at a collar longitudinal mid-point.
This arrangement provides an optimally balanced fence post
assembly.
The end-stop may be a dimple. By altering the collar form using a
surface process, no extra components are required to provide the
end-stop and thus the cost, weight and complexity of the fence post
assembly is reduced.
The first member may further comprise a hook for attaching a fence,
the hook being arranged at a distal end of the first member.
The second member may further comprise a foot, the foot being
arranged at a distal end of the second member. The foot may
terminate in a spike. This arrangement allows easy insertion of the
fence post into the ground.
The hook may define a fence plane and may include an aperture that
may be aligned with the fence plane. The foot may include a
side-foot, the side-foot extending with a dog leg cross-brace,
extending perpendicularly relative to the cross-bore and the
aperture. This arrangement provides a foot step to facilitate
insertion of the fence post into the ground. Furthermore, arranging
the dog leg cross-brace to extend perpendicularly relative to the
cross-bore and the aperture ensures that the foot step provided by
the dog leg cross-brace does not interfere with the fence
plane.
The side-foot may also terminate in a spike. This further
facilitates insertion of the fence post into the ground.
The fastener may comprise a screw. The screw may be self-tapping.
The first member and or second member and or collar may be
tubular.
The first and or second member may be made of fibreglass. The
collar may be made of metal.
According to a second aspect of the present disclosure there is
provided an enclosure assembly comprising a net fence and at least
one fence post as hereinbefore described. The reticulated fence may
be of metal or plastics.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Various aspects of the teachings of the present disclosure, and
arrangements embodying those teachings, will hereafter be described
by way of illustrative example with reference to the accompanying
drawings, in which:
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an assembled fence post;
FIG. 2 is an enlarged exploded view of the fence post of FIG.
1;
FIG. 3 is an enlarged side elevation of the assembled fence post of
FIG. 1 showing an attachment region;
FIG. 4 is a vertical cross section of the fence post attachment
region of FIG. 3;
FIG. 5 is a horizontal cross section of the fence post attachment
region of FIG. 3 taken at line A-A;
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the assembled fence post of FIG. 1
with a net fence forming an enclosure assembly; and
FIG. 7 is a side elevation of the enclosure assembly of FIG. 6.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
One implementation of the teachings of the present disclosure will
now be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5 of the accompanying
drawings, in which there is schematically depicted a two-part fence
post 10. The two-part fence post 10 has a first member 20 and a
second member 30. The first and second members 20, 30 are
substantially the same length. The first and second members 20, 30
have an annular cross-section and are tubular in form.
The fence post 10 (see FIGS. 1 and 2) is assembled by coupling the
first member 20 and second member 30 together by means of a
fastening arrangement that comprises a collar 40 and a fastener
50.
The collar 40 is tubular in form with an annular cross-section. An
end-stop is provided at the longitudinal mid-point of the collar
40. The end-stop is in the form of a dimple 44 made in the sidewall
of the collar 40. In one embodiment, the fastener 50 is a
self-tapping screw, but other forms of self-tapping fasteners may
be used without departing from the spirit and scope of the present
disclosure.
The first member 20 has a proximal end 22 and a distal end 24.
Similarly, the second member 30 has a proximal end 32 and a distal
end 34. The terms proximal and distal are used in relation to the
fastening arrangement.
As shown the first member 20 forms an upper member of the fence
post, and the second member forms a lower member 30 of the fence
post.
The first member 20 is further provided with a connector, in the
illustrated embodiment a hook 60, for attaching the first member to
a fence. The hook 60 is arranged at the distal end 24 of the first
member 20.
The second member 30 is further provided with a foot 70 for
locating and fixing the fence post 10 in the ground. The foot 70 is
arranged at the distal end 34 of the second member. In this
embodiment the foot terminates in a spike or other ground engaging
member. The foot 70 includes a side-foot 72 extending with a dog
leg cross brace 74, and terminating in a spike extending
substantially in parallel with the spike of the foot 70.
The second member 30 has a cross-bore 35 adjacent the proximal end
32. An aperture 42 is defined in a sidewall of the collar 40,
adjacent the end thereof that couples to the proximal end of the
second member (which end will be the lower end, in use).
To assemble the fence post, the proximal end 22 of the first member
20 is covered in an adhesive 46. As shown best in FIGS. 2 to 4, the
adhesive covered proximal end 22 of the first member 20 is then
inserted into an end of collar 40 furthest from the aperture 42
(the upper end, in use) until the first member abuts the end stop
provided by the dimple 44. The adhesive 46 cures to fixedly attach
the first member 20 to the collar 40. Furthermore, the cured
adhesive 46 forms a waterproof seal at the tip of the collar
40.
The proximal end 32 of the second member 30 is the inserted into
the opposite end (the lower end, in use) of collar 40 until it
abuts the end stop provided by dimple 44. The second member 30 is
pivoted in this position until the cross-bore 35 is aligned with
the aperture 42.
The fastener 50 may then be inserted into the aperture 42 and
cross-bore 35. The self-tapping screw cuts a thread in a wall of
the second member 30 defining the cross-bore 35 and secures the
second member 30 relative to the collar 40, (see FIG. 5).
An enclosure assembly 100 is shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. The enclosure
comprises a fence post 10 and a fence 110 comprising a reticulated
mesh. In this instance the fence comprises a wire mesh, but it will
be appreciated that it may equally be of plastics. The fence 110
has a lattice structure comprising horizontally and vertically
extending wires, together extending in a fence plane. In this
particular embodiment, the wire fence 110 has a more densely
arranged lattice structure in a lower region 112 and a less densely
arranged latter structure in an upper region 114.
The assembled fence post 10 is arranged such that the lowermost
horizontally extending wire is hooked under the dog leg cross brace
74, between the foot 70 and side-foot 72. Subsequent horizontally
extending wires are thread on alternate sides of the fence post 10.
The uppermost horizontally extending wire is then hooked over the
hook 60. The fence post 10 and wire fence 110 are sized so as to
keep the wire fence 110 relatively taught.
The enclosure 100 may be assembled in an alternate order. For
example, the second member 30 may be partially inserted into the
ground using the foot 70, without engaging the side-foot 72 with
the ground. The wire fence 110 may then be partially threaded over
the second member 30, with a lower end of the wire fence 110 looped
under the side-foot 72. The second member 30 may then be fully
inserted into the ground such that the side-foot 72 cross-brace 74
is level with the ground. The first member 20 may then be threaded
through the remainder of the wire fence 110. The first member 20 is
then connected to the second member by placing the collar 40 over
the second member 30 and inserting the fastener 50.
In the exemplary embodiment the first member and second member are
made of extruded fibreglass. The collar is made of metal. The use
of other suitable and lightweight materials is envisaged. In
alternate embodiments the first member and second member may be of
plastics or metal material.
In the exemplary embodiment, the first member is fixed to the
collar by adhesive. In an alternate embodiment the first member may
be fixed to the collar by means of a second fastening arrangement
in the same manner as used to join the collar and the second
member. This second fastening arrangement may be provided instead
of, or in addition to the adhesive.
In the exemplary embodiment, wire-mesh netting is described,
however other similar lightweight fencing material may be used.
It will be appreciated that whilst various aspects and embodiments
of the present disclosure have heretofore been described, the scope
of the present disclosure is not limited to the particular
arrangements set out herein and instead extends to encompass all
arrangements, and modifications and alterations thereto, which fall
within the scope of the appended claims. For example, while one
embodiment described herein discloses a two-part fence post, it
will be apparent to persons of ordinary skill in the art that the
teachings of the disclosure may readily be applied to fence posts
having more than two parts. For example, the fence post could
comprise three members, a first two of which are coupled together
by a first collar before the third is coupled to the coupled first
and second members by means of a second collar. As such, references
herein to two-part fence posts should not necessarily be construed
as limiting the scope of the disclosure only to fence posts having
two parts.
It should also be noted that while the accompanying claims set out
particular combinations of features described herein, the scope of
the present disclosure is not limited to the particular
combinations hereafter claimed but instead extends to encompass any
combination of features herein disclosed.
Finally, it should be noted that any element in a claim that does
not explicitly include the word "means" or explicitly state "means
for" performing a specified function, or "steps for" performing a
specific function, is not to be interpreted as a "means" or "step"
clause as specified in 35 U.S.C. Sec. 112, par. 6. In particular,
any use of "step of" in the claims appended hereto is not intended
to invoke the provisions of 35 U.S.C. Sec. 112, par. 6.
* * * * *